Monday, May 23, 2011

Meals on Two Wheels

Friday was Memphis Bike-to-Work Day, a second annual citywide event in which residents are encouraged to ditch their cars in favor of bikes for one day. I live in Midtown, about 15 minutes away from my downtown office. And though I've never biked that far before (I've only had my bike since Christmas), I knew I could do it.

So I strapped on my helmet and hopped on Falcor. I named my Electra Ladies' Cruiser after the luckdragon from The Neverending Story because I figured he'd take me to magical places:

I'd tell you more about the ride itself, but I'm writing a story at the newspaper I work for on that, and it won't be out until Wednesday. Since my blog has some local readership, I'll skip to the food part.

I usually either bring my lunch to work or drive home to eat, but I could do neither since I was biking to work. A packed lunch would have been too heavy with all my other work stuff in my backpack, and the ride home for lunch would have taken an extra couple of hours out of the work day. So I went with the obvious solution — bike to the nearest vegan-friendly downtown eatery. Turns out, that was Frank's Deli on South Main:

Although Frank's is about two blocks from my office, I'd never tried their food. There are several portabella mushroom-based dishes on the menu (a panini, a wrap, or a salad), but I went with the Portabella Panini with no pesto-goat cheese spread and a side of Zapp's Voodoo Chips:

I biked the sandwich to Civic Center Plaza, where a Center City Commission-sponsored Bike Expo with live music was underway for all the bike-to-workers. I found a park bench and chowed down. The bread was soft and chewy and the sandwich was packed with balsamic-marinated mushrooms and sweet tri-color peppers. The Zapp's were as awesome as always.

I was about to head back to the office, when I spied the Drag'n Frozen Treats man. This guy drives around downtown on a bike, hauling a cart of frozen treats. He had these Lemon Sorbettos (served in a frozen lemon cup!!), and they were totally vegan:

Perfect treat for a hot spring afternoon. I was a little sweaty from the ride, but the sorbet totally cooled me off. Would I ride to work everyday? Nope. But I totally enjoyed Friday's ride, and I burned hella calories!

Good for you! Looks like a great ride with some delicious eats on the way! :) Your bike is so cute.

I am actually afraid of bikes, I'm sorry to admit... I had a pretty bad accident when I was in middle school (my braces went through my lip! eek), and I have been afraid to get back on ever since. I wish I could get over my fear because biking is so great for so many reasons!!

My name is Bianca ...

About Me

I'm an 11-year vegan, 21-year vegetarian from the Mid-South, not too far from the muddy banks of the Mississippi River. And that means cornbread, butter beans, and collard greens.
These days, I live in Memphis. Check out my cookbook — Cookin' Crunk. It's filled with yummilicious veganized soul food and country classics.